10 Things You Learn Rewatching Halloween II (1981)
8. Razor Blade Festivities
One of the most absolutely horrifying moments in the whole film actually has nothing to do with Michael Myers - or any of the main characters for that matter.
Early in the film, there are a few quick glimpses of a young boy and his mother rushing into Haddonfield Memorial Hospital. The mother holds a rag up to the boy's bleeding mouth, as we see that he has a razor blade stuck in the roof of his mouth.
It's a terrible sight to see and is immediately disconcerting. And though it passes in a matter of seconds, it lingers with the viewer. Wisely, Halloween II takes the opportunity of revisiting Haddonfield and the holiday of Halloween as a chance to embrace some more cultural myths about all Hallow's eve.
The razor-blade-in-the-apple story had been a trick-or-treating myth for decades before 1981, which is why such a brief moment in the film can leave such a lasting impact, by capitalizing on years of built-up fear and paranoia.
Considering that exploring ancient Halloween folklore through the lens of modern horror was the direction Carpenter was keen on taking the entire franchise in, as shown in the soon-to-be-rewatched Halloween III, this moment stands out as not only an unnerving scene but a crucial one.